Tremors Of The Storm
by lost-in-the-sekai
Summary: Stein reflects on the past, on his regrets and the woman he loves. She was everything to him... Even if she didn't think he was equal to dirt. She... She was his heart, his soul... his Spirit, and someone took that away from him... Fem!Spirit X Stein, Male!Kami X Fem!Spirit One-Shot.


It was raining that day. I remember it clearly. I stayed indoors, poring through past experiment records. It was a Saturday, so I didn't worry about needing to attend class to teach. It was probably for the best... On a stormy evening like this one, I couldn't possibly get anything done. Nowadays, my hand shook far too much when I pierced the skin with my scalpel. Having completely lost control of my hands long ago, the storms make it worse. If we are being perfectly honest, I should say that the tremors started around the time Spirit left. Spirit... Ironically enough, she was the reason I kept on living. I didn't care about her promiscuity, her indecency... She was my favorite weapon. I favored her even more than Marie. When she got married... I was broken. The child looked just like her father... Nothing like Spirit. I was infuriated when the child enrolled at the D.W.M.A. Her mother's beauty was utterly lost in translation.

Light flashed throughout my stitched house. I turned the screw in my head, blocking the sound that I knew would come as I focused on the experiment records. Lately, the records had focused on myself as the subject. On other days, I ran scratches through the walls, but this was more a vain effort than anything else. I had run out of humans willing to become my test subjects, but there was nothing changing about my body. It had stayed the same since puberty, since I was about seventeen. I still remember back in those days, even before those days, the first day when Spirit was assigned as my partner. I had just transferred to the Academy, having been expelled from my old school for using too many soul attacks against bullies and landing several in the hospital. Lord Death had seen true potential in me, and I was soon enrolled in the D.W.M.A. I was new, small, thin, and intelligent. An obvious target for anyone. Bullying was often in my agenda. Classes became a safe haven, and I savored the precious moments where I could learn over everything else. Except... Spirit.

Her partner had quit after she had broken up with him. I was at a loss. Who would ever sever ties with such a magnificent specimen? I soon found myself becoming enamored with the girl, although I knew she wanted nothing to do with me. Spirit preferred the company of her good friends, who were terrible influences on her. They were the stereotypical high school hoodlums. They eventually became dropouts. I learned that outside of the D.W.M.A., the young woman wanted nothing to do with me. I was younger than she was, and although it was only by a few months, the difference in height was one that magnified the age difference about five times. While Spirit appeared to be in her late teens, I could barely pass for a twelve-year old. Occasionally, I would be lonely as Spirit left the apartment we shared to go off to another party. But, as the time went on, I learned to embrace that emotion as one I would experience for the rest of my life.

It was also around that time I was getting more into human dissection, experimentation. The insides of animals had always fascinated me, but as my time alone increased and increased, so did my impulse to compare them to the insides of humans. I can still clearly recall upon the first time these thoughts were birthed into my imagination. I had dissected a mouse I caught from one of the traps around the house, and brought out my set of tools. The set was an old one, but it suited my purposes perfectly. I had purchased them off a doctor who had replaced the old set for an updated one. Everything I needed was in the case, and they were in pristine condition. I took he utmost care of the utensils, as they were my prized possessions. I had brought out the scalpel, making an incision near the mouse's ribcage as I heard Spirit coming into the house. There were muffled voices as the door closed, and I frowned. Usually, Spirit wouldn't bring boys home on a school night. I wondered who would be so special to catch her eye. She hadn't brought anyone home for a few weeks, and I thought that she had made a change for the better. Apparently, I was wrong. For some reason, I remember being incensed by the fact she had brought a boy home, and I accidentally gripped the cutting edge of the scalpel much too tight. I didn't notice the deep slice in my hand until bright red covered my white clothing.

"Oh dear... This won't do..." I whispered, not feeling the pain. I was entranced by the thoughts in my mind. I wanted to cut deeper, cut longer... I removed the tool from my injury and then expanded the cut, bringing it all along my arm. Around my shoulder, my chest... My vision began to blur around he edges, and I realized if I didn't do something to stop the bleeding, I would soon die. Quickly, I roughly stitched up the wounds after applying the necessary disinfectants. The cuts all along my body were much more shallow than the one in my hand, but they would leave some very nice scars... After surveying my room, I noticed the vast amount of blood. This would need to be cleaned up... Dissections could only be performed in a sterile environment.

"I wonder where the bleach is?" I wondered aloud as my door creaked open. I was welcomed by the sight of Spirit making out with some random guy on our couch. I stared blankly at them as they went at it. Eventually, the boy's head popped up and he caught a glimpse of me, screaming.

"SPIRIT! YOU SAID THE FREAK WASN'T HERE!"

My eye twitched slightly at the insult. Freak? It was nothing I hadn't heard before, but it was as if his words were made of steel, the edges cutting me as they flew from his lips.

"FRANKEN! WHAT THE HELL?!" She screamed, sitting up with wide eyes.

For a moment, I was confused. Why were they backing away? Usually, people came toward me with intent to abuse. Why was this time any different? An explanation failed me. But then, as I searched through their eyes, I realized what emotion was running rampant within them. Their wavelengths were exuding it. Pure fear. But... Why? Why would they fear me? I was small, awkward, antisocial... Fresh meat to bullies like them. I looked at myself, to my blood-stained clothing and my scarred, bloody arm. I left my scalpel, in my room, I was unarmed... I reached a hand to my face, and noticed my eyes were wider than usual. A grin was displayed on my face.

"YOU'RE MAD! ABSOLUTELY MAD!" The blond that Spirit was most likely hoping to sleep with stood up, backing away.

I ignored his words, walking to the supply closet and gathering the things I needed. The duo's souls were still immensely troubled, even more so after I left. It was as if they were afraid they were going to die... Oh well. Humans such as those were of no use to me. Insignificant, even. I was only troubled an amazing weapon such as Spirit would pollute herself further by acquainting with them.

That memory sticks with me to this day, and I'm sure it will forever.

A few years later, Spirit abandoned me. She had a new boyfriend, Kyno, who asked to become her partner. She left me. We were still friends, I had gotten closer to her over the years... But my heart was broken. She left me...

I had grown taller, taller than her, even, and got stronger. Just recently, I had begun experimenting on Spirit, and had driven a screw through my head to control my mind, and I used it as a focus knob, if you will. It was painful to insert, but definitely paid off in the long run. I was able to concentrate, because recently, my mind had begun to drift away, consumed by strange thoughts...

I would later find out that this was the Madness.

One night, after Spirit left me, she knocked on my door, sobbing. It was incredibly late.

"Spirit..." I began, walking out toward the door. She looked up, her impossibly blue eyes brimming over with tears. Her brilliant red hair was in ruin, sticking out in every direction.

"Can't you see... I'm a mess..." She trailed off, breaking off into sobs.

"Please, calm down. Tell me what happened."

"Kyno... He..."

"I can help you. Your soul is troubled. You are my only friend. Please. Allow me to help you."

For the first time, Spirit looked helpless. She had always been the one that knew what to do, knew how everything worked... Even what she wanted to do. But, she was afraid. Her boyfriend had taken things too far... She was only seventeen... And she was beautiful...

Her boyfriend turned out to be the blond that I had scared so many years earlier. Blond, green eyes... A bookworm type, determined to succeed. However, one night of drunkeness ruined it all. She got pregnant. At seventeen. She was eighteen when the girl was born. Maka. Spirit was married soon after, but her old habits never left. The girl hates Spirit for cheating on her father, but Spirit loves the girl with all she is. The marriage was short lived, but the regret lives within Spirit to this day. She'll never admit it, but she is truly sorry for who she's become. She wishes she never cheated...

And although I will never admit this, I wish that the girl was never born. I miss having Spirit as a weapon... She's a Death Scythe now... I see her every day, and it breaks my heart. So, I've been relying on dissection yet again. Opening up a creature and letting what's inside out... That is my release. It's how I cope...

And so, I sit here, cutting the blade into my skin once more as I did all those years ago. Once in a while, a tear falls down my cheek as Spirit comes to mind.

A Flash goes through my house. There is a shadow, one that wasn't there before. A trembling figure.

"Stein-kun..." She whispers, using the old name from when we were in school.

"I... This is how... I can't any more... The madness is taking over..." I frowned, tears running down again. I couldn't control them, this was odd. I had never cried before...

Spirit embraced me in her arms, years of lost words translated through our contact. A flash goes through again, and a large crack. The shadow comes closer, pressing her mouth to mine. My body trembles, and the tears fall on to her cheeks. My blood trickles to the floor.

"I... I'm sorry Stein..."

The shadow leaves as fast as it came. The madness tricked me once again... This is why I hate storms...

The apparition, the regret, the shadow...

I hate them... Because of the Spirit that comes with the Tremors of the Storm.


End file.
